The IFA's 14th Annual Meeting and Fall Conference will take place September 26-28, 2019. We are excited to bring you a wide range of forest management topics this year.
The conference is located at in southwestern Illinois at the beautiful Principia College in Elsah, Illinois with the Thursday field tour and evening social event both taking placed at nearby Pere Marquette State Park.
CONFERENCE PROGRAM
The conference kicks off on Thursday, September 26th at 3 p.m. for a tour of Pere Marquette State Park's use of prescribed fire as a management tool for natural lands. Following that tour we will have a social event (light snacks provided and a cash bar available) at the Pere Marquette lodge, starting at 5:30 p.m.
Friday is a full day at Principia College with a range of great presentations starting at 9 a.m. with morning plenary sessions on big river forests, forest health, climate change, and oak pests. The afternoon provides a couple of choices for attendees. One track focuses on the economics of forestry with presentations on taxes, timber, resources, easement options, and working with consultants and foresters. The second track has a variety of presentations including ones on walnut management, maple syrup production, rare trees of Illinois, forest wildlife, and agroforestry.
The conference concludes with a Saturday morning tour of the forestry research and demonstration projects underway at Principia College, including different harvest regimes.
LODGING
There are multiple lodging options within 20 minutes of Principia College. Several hotels are approximately 10 miles away from the college in Alton, Pere Marquette Lodge & Conference Center is by Grafton, and Elsah has a couple bed and breakfast available. You will find links to these establishments below.
Hotels
B&Bs
State Park Lodge
We will again this year be having a silent auction as part of the annual meeting. This is a great opportunity to pick up some neat items and support IFA at the same time! Please contact Mike McMahan if you have a silent auction item or cash donation for this important annual fundraiser.
If you have questions about the annual meeting or the Illinois Forestry Association, contact Zach DeVillez, IFA Program Coordinator at 618-695-3383 or zachd@illinois.edu
